Department for Transport

Great British Railways

Lord Berkeley: To ask His Majesty's Government what costs have been incurred to date by (1) government departments, and (2) executive agencies, on developing (a) the Great British Railway plan, and (b) preparations for associated legislation.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The Rail Transformation Programme was created to deliver the commitments set out in the Plan for Rail White Paper, to modernise rail for passengers and freight and transform the industry so it is sustainable for the future. The budget is set and spend monitored at programme level and is not broken down into separate lines for those elements of the programme.

Railways: Sustainable Development

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with governments around the world regarding sustainable construction for large scale railway projects; and how these discussions will inform future infrastructure.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The Department regularly engages with foreign governments to identify areas for future trade and growth, closer collaboration and knowledge sharing on large infrastructure projects, and to identify opportunities to promote the UK rail supply chain. Using international engagement as a key driver for growth, the Department also ensures that its priorities are reflected in discussions with other governments. These include decarbonisation, pursuing trade opportunities, promoting British business and knowledge sharing.

High Speed 2 Line: Colne Valley

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask His Majesty's Government, following the discovery of water pollution in the HS2 cofferdams sunk into the aquifer for the Colne Valley Viaduct construction haul road, what plans they have tocall for a moratorium on the sinking of deeper piles of up to 80 metres for the Viaduct piers until the source of the pollution at the haul road pile sites has been identified.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The piling for the Colne Valley Viaduct is largely complete. The extensive monitoring of groundwater around all piling works and cofferdams has detected no contamination issues in the water environment related to HS2 construction works within the Colne Valley. Monitoring data is shared on a frequent basis with both Affinity Water and the Environment Agency. Affinity Water has its own monitoring regime to verify these results. HS2 Ltd has consents in place with the Environment Agency, in consultation with Affinity Water, for these works, which are supported by an extensive groundwater risk assessment and monitoring regime to avoid pollution or long-term impact to the underlying aquifer. There are no plans to cease the construction of the piles which will support the Colne Valley Viaduct.

Roads: Brent

Baroness Randerson: To ask His Majesty's Government what financial assistance they will provide to ensure that the Brent Cross flyover is fully operational again at the earliest opportunity for vehicles exceeding 7.5 tonnes.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: In September, the Government selected 31 Major Road Network (MRN) infrastructure projects to be accelerated, which include the Brent Cross scheme, which is a programme of infrastructure projects including upgrades to flyovers and bridges. The Department is working closely with TfL in order to help accelerate the projects that TfL puts forward as part of the business case process for the Brent Cross scheme.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Hussein Al-Saadi

Lord Scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to reports that (1) political prisoner Hussein Al-Saadi has been returned to Jau Prison in Bahrain despite suffering from heart problems and sickle cell disease, and (2) complaints made to Bahrain’s Ministry of Interior Ombudsman have not secured Al-Saadi adequate medical treatment, what urgent representations they will make to the government of Bahrain on this case.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Officials and ministers have regular discussions with senior Bahraini counterparts on human rights issues, including most recently during Lord Ahmad's meeting with the Bahraini Foreign Minister in New York. The Government of Bahrain has been clear that access to medical care for those in detention is guaranteed and provided. We welcome these assurances, urge continued transparency and encourage those with concerns to raise them with the appropriate Bahraini human rights oversight body.

Xinjiang: Ethnic Groups

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that crimes have been committed against Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other Turkic Muslim minorities in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China; and what steps they are taking in response to ensure that the perpetrators of any such crimes are brought to justice.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: The report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights provides new evidence of the extent of China's efforts to silence and repress Uyghurs and other minorities in Xinjiang. It includes a broad range of evidence, including first-hand accounts from victims.The UK has led international efforts to pressure China to change its behaviour. We have imposed sanctions, led joint statements at the UN, taken action to tackle forced labour in supply chains, funded research to expose China's actions, and consistently raised China's human rights violations at the highest levels in Beijing. Most recently, the Foreign Secretary did so in a meeting with his Chinese counterpart on 20 September.Given the seriousness of the report's findings, on 6 October we supported formal action at the UN Human Rights Council that requested a Council Debate on the situation in Xinjiang. While this vote didn't pass, China's attempts to stifle debate and hide the truth will not succeed. We will continue to work with our partners to hold the Chinese authorities to account and continue to shine a spotlight on China's human rights violations.

Pakistan: Arms Trade

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Pakistan regarding its sale of arms to the Myanmar military in the past year; and at what ministerial level those meetings were held.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: The UK is a longstanding supporter of an arms embargo on Myanmar. We are clear that countries should not sell arms to the Myanmar military. On 27 March, the UK coordinated a joint statement with 48 signatories that committed us to working to prevent the flow of arms and equipment to the Myanmar military. We have also worked with partners to secure strong language on stopping the flow of arms at the G7, UN General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council. In January, Pakistan's sale of arms to the Myanmar military was raised at an official level by British High Commission officials, with the Government of Pakistan.

Conflict Resolution: Females

Baroness Hodgson of Abinger: To ask His Majesty's Government how many times theWomen, Peace and Security Ministerial Steering Board has met since May 2019; and when the board is next due to meet.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: At present, there is no Women, Peace and Security Ministerial Steering Board. However, the Government is considering the best way to strengthen governance and accountability as part of the development of the UK's fifth Women, Peace and Security (WPS) National Action Plan (NAP), 2023-27. Ministers have engaged regularly with civil society and experts as part of the NAP development process and are committed to continuing this engagement.